


Anything it Takes to Make You Stay

by stephen_is_strange



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Injury, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-15
Updated: 2019-06-15
Packaged: 2020-05-12 13:32:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,119
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19230130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stephen_is_strange/pseuds/stephen_is_strange
Summary: Really, it was Tony's problem to fix, so Stephen should just mind his own goddamn business while he pulled the bullet out.Instead, Stephen was hovering over him, talking a mile a minute about the proper way to remove a bullet. When Tony ignored him, he continued."Tony, if you don't let me help you, you're going to end up further damaging yourself and I don't want to listen to you complain when your side hurts because you managed to reignite the Titan wounds," and really, fuck Stephen for bringing that up because now Tony was really not going to allow him to fix it. His nanotech was doing a damn fine job, thank you very much.





	Anything it Takes to Make You Stay

Really, it was Tony's problem to fix, so Stephen should just mind his own goddamn business while he pulled the bullet out.

Instead, Stephen was hovering over him, talking a mile a minute about the proper way to remove a bullet. When Tony ignored him, he continued.

"Tony, if you don't let me help you, you're going to end up further damaging yourself and I don't want to listen to you complain when your side hurts because you managed to reignite the Titan wounds," and really, fuck Stephen for bringing that up because now Tony was really not going to allow him to fix it. His nanotech was doing a damn fine job, thank you very much, though he could not say as much over the makeshift gag that kept him from screaming. He settled for a glare that Stephen interpreted as a cry for help because he was trying to touch Tony again. Tony spit the cloth out and stopped working.

"Back the hell off, Houdini! It was my fault that I got shot, I should have had my armor on faster!" Stephen doesn't wither like Tony expected him to. In fact, he just continued to try and help.

"Fuck off!" Tony shouted, repulsor whining as it charged to life. He didn't want to hit Stephen, but if he didn't leave him the hell alone he was going to blast him into tomorrow. Stephen froze, glancing between the repulsor and Tony's face before finally, he relented. He collapsed in on himself, worry still plaguing his face, though Tony had not an ounce of compassion. He took a steadying breath, though it was shakier than he intended. He could only half-fill his lungs before his body screamed in protest, breath wheezing out of him to ease the pain.

Tony went back to work, this time without a gag, a horrific mistake on his part. His nanotech was painfully inadequate, as he hadn't thought to program bullet-removing tools into what was supposed to be a bullet-proof suit. He didn't pity the way Stephen flinched at his gasps of pain, but he did wonder why Stephen cared so much.

He pondered only a moment longer because when he pulled the makeshift tweezers out a little too fast and too far to the right, all he saw was white, a scream wrenching its way from his throat. He dropped the tweezers, pain seizing his body before he dropped to the ground and everything around him vanished into nothing.

Tony woke slowly. He opened his eyes, blearily taking in the bright fluorescents and pale blue walls of the room. The medbay then. He caught the sight of the monitor, the steady beat of his heart causing sharp beeps to resound through the space. He tried to recall how he ended up in the medbay, hands balling into a fist when the memory crystallizes in his mind. Fuck, Stephen, sincerely. He quickly sat up in bed, looking for the guilty party.

Bruce is at his side in an instant—gently pushing him back down. "Hey, whoa, Tony," he said, giving him a careful once over. “You all right?”

"Bruce, where's Stephen? I told him I could handle it. What did he do, knock me out with some magical bullshit? I'm gonna-!"

"Tony, you passed out from shock. Your botched bullet removal could have seriously injured you." Stephen came to stand in the doorway, hair disheveled and eyes dark with fatigue. Tony huffed.

"I survived vibranium to the chest, no way one bullet-"

"I just spent four hours helping Bruce fix your mess, I'm not going to stand here and listen to you groan about capable of a surgeon you are!"

"-is going to stop me from staying awake and closing a simple wound." Bruce watched them shout over each other, hands wringing together as his mouth opened and closed on a possible interjection.

"Why are you so fucking ungrateful? You’re lucky it didn’t shred any of your organs or you could have seriously screwed yourself up! I just saved your Iron Man career, a simple thank you would suffice!"

"Saved my career? With what, magic? You just stood there while Bruce worked, don't even fucking lie to me!"

"Without my magic keeping your blood inside your body, you would have bled out on the concrete before you even got here! You’d still be in the middle of the street without my magic, actually! I can't believe your so stubborn as to think you can solve everything by yourself!"

"I'm stubborn? Had you left me the fuck alone, I could have had the bullet out in a few seconds!"

"You couldn't see around the tears in your goddamn eyes, much less operate the ‘tweezers’ you made!"

"Guys!" Bruce shouted, eyes wildly shifting between Stephen and Tony. "Please stop before you rip your wound open again." Stephen’s gaze zeroed in on Tony's side, the fury that had been winding his body tight giving way to genuine, shoulder-sagging concern. His voice was much softer when he spoke, looking down at the floor.

"God, Tony, I... I didn't know what to do. You were hurting yourself and I couldn't even do anything." Stephen's hands shook as they combed through the sides of his hair, salt and pepper strands filtering through his scarred fingers.

"I had it handled." It felt more like a lie now that Stephen had phrased it like that, but Tony was nothing if not prideful.

"Shut up!" Stephen’s hands tightened in his hair before letting them fall to his sides with a heavy sigh. "I was scared. Do you know how many times I've seen wounds like that turn life-ending because of malpractice? Do you even care at all that I was sick to my stomach watching you practically tear yourself apart?" Tony's stomach churned, and he found himself unable to look at Stephen any longer.

Bruce seemed to have calmed down a little, staring at the charts and machines that had steadily returned to normal. As normal as Tony's vitals were ever going to get, anyway, lungs and heart damaged as they were by emergency surgeries in dank Middle Eastern caves.

"'M sorry. I wasn't trying to make you worry." Stephen let out a sharp breath, a laugh, but hardly anything but exasperated.

"It doesn't matter what you were trying to do, Tony. You can't just… just shut me out." Tony remembered then, how often Pepper told him the same thing, how it had been one of the last things she’d said before walking out of the house. Tony sighed, running his hand down his face.

"I'm sorry, Stephen." Tony spared Stephen a look then. He was leaning heavily against the doorframe, as though his whole body would give out if he didn’t have the support. Tony hadn’t ever seen him this wrecked, even after exhaustive battles. It felt honest in a way that made Tony want to close himself up.

Bruce gave each of them a cursory glance before leaving, giving Stephen a gentle push into the room as he went. Stephen stumbled, catching himself on the edge of Tony's bed. Closer now, Tony could see how red Stephen's eyes were, and he hoped it was from the dry air.

"Tony, please, just let me help." The man hunched over at the foot of the bed is hardly recognizable from the one who had just been screaming at him. Tony knew what that explosive anger meant, knew what it felt like, so he couldn’t exactly hold it against Stephen. He was begging, and Tony should be flattered, but it only made the tight feeling in his chest worse.

"Redo my bandages. Bruce always manages to pinch my skin." The bandages were fine, actually, but if Stephen continued to look at him like that, Tony wasn’t sure he would ever get rid of the weight threatening to crush his heart entirely. Stephen continued to stare, confusion settling on his features before realization dawned, though he quickly steeled his expression, offering Tony a small smile as he stood up straight.

"Okay." He went and grabbed the bandages from the cabinet, unwinding a bit of the tape. Tony didn't miss the way Stephen chewed his lip, whispering something underneath his breath. The shivering in his hands stopped instantly, a gentle orange light fizzing from his fingers before dissipating entirely.

Stephen sat on the edge of the bed, gently setting the blankets aside and running his hand up Tony’s side. It was scarcely the most intimate thing he had been a part of, but the delicate run of his fingers was certainly more tender than most experiences. He couldn’t help his breathy exhale, or maybe he didn’t want to, watching Stephen inch his way up his torso. Stephen’s hand stuttered at every shiver, eyes intent on every quiver of his muscles. Tony felt overexposed but when Stephen’s breath caught, satisfaction rolled through him. This was hardly necessary, Tony realized, Stephen was just indulging himself.

"I'm gonna undo this now." He said, fingers ghosting over the edge of the bandage. He peeled the tape slowly, eyes steady on the unraveling wound. The tape was safely, and almost painlessly, removed, and along with with with it, the soft bandage. Stephen settled a new one on top, smoothed it down, checking for any pinched skin with careful fingers.

“Thank you,” Tony said, and Stephen pulled off a strip of tape from the roll and adhered it to his skin, once again checking for any pinches.

“Thank you for letting me do this,” Stephen answered.

He finished fixing Tony’s bandage in silence. There were a lot of things Tony wanted to say, questions he wanted to ask, but the feeling of Stephen’s attention solely focused on him caused them all to melt into nothing.

Stephen let his hand linger over Tony’s skin again, delicate as a feather. He ghosted over old scars, never straying more than a few inches from the bandage. His eyes were glazed over, pensive, and Tony wished he could read his mind. He didn't want Stephen to pity him, and he opened his mouth to say as much, but Stephen glanced up then, absolutely unreadable, and Tony closed his mouth.

"I think I love you," Stephen said, and Tony's heart tightened again, suddenly hyper-aware of how close Stephen was. Stephen's hand lifted off his side and Tony is relieved and crushed at the loss. Stephen gently set his hand on top of Tony's, his fingers shaking slightly as they wrapped around Tony's.

"It's okay if you're not sure, or if you don't return my feelings. I know that you and Pepper only recently separated, so if you need time to be by yourself, I understand. I just need you to know." Stephen squeezed his hand once before letting go.

Tony was still trying to process when Stephen stood up, so he quickly snatched Stephen's wrist to keep him from walking away. He stopped, thankfully, and Tony tried desperately to organize his thoughts while the heart monitor continued to remind him how much time he was taking. 

"I want to kiss you," Tony blurted out, and Stephen's eyes widened. Tony was caught between satisfaction at having surprised Stephen and mortification at how juvenile he sounded. Stephen opened and closed his mouth several times, and Tony could almost see the cogs turning in his mind.

"I can," Stephen finally said. "Kiss you, that is." He wasn't blushing but his hands were getting clammy, so Tony simply pulled him a bit closer until Stephen is hovering precariously over him.

"Please do," Tony breathed out, and Stephen leaned down the last few inches. The tightening in his chest suddenly released, and he breathed deeply despite the way his nose was pushed against Stephen's cheek. The scent of Stephen's skin was sweet, chocolate and wood meandering in a way that had Tony missing the halls of the sanctum.

Stephen broke the kiss first, letting his forehead rest against Tony's. He breathed slowly through his nose, eyes closed for a few moments longer.

"Thank you, Tony," he said, his thumb curving over the apple of his cheek tenderly.

"One more?" Tony asked, and Stephen laughed, a gentle puff of breath against Tony's face.

"One more. Then you need to rest," Stephen said, pressing a chaste kiss to Tony's lips, and another to his cheek, before standing up straight.

"Goodnight, Tony." He helped Tony settle down into the covers, kissed Tony's palm, then left the room, telling Tony he would be back in the morning to make sure he was well.

Tony drifted off, dreaming of nothing but warm, plush couches by a fireplace in an ancient library easing him into a peaceful slumber.

**Author's Note:**

> My first published fanfiction! Inspired by [Otpdisaster's prompt:](https://otpdisaster.tumblr.com/)
> 
> "Person B performing DIY bullet removal after refusing any assistance and demanding that Person A not touch them. Person A can only watch as B fails each agonizing attempt, eventually pushed to the verge of passing out, before A can help without being yelled at."
> 
> The title is from "Blue" by Troye Sivan.
> 
> Any feedback is greatly appreciated! Thank you for reading!


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